The Armed Citizen® May 19, 2017

Miami officials hope that footage from a home security camera will help identify a would-be burglar. The video shows a mother of two using a firearm to chase off the man who gained unlawful entry into her home. Shortly after he broke in, the intruder found himself staring down the barrel of a shotgun, which made him decide to run off. “He was running for his life and kept looking back, making sure I wasn’t going to shoot him in the back,” said the mother, who was home with her 10-year-old and toddler at the time of the home intrusion. The woman told local reporters that she didn’t want to shoot for a couple of reasons: one was that the threat had dissipated when he ran off; the other is that she didn’t want to traumatize her children more than they already had been. Police found the abandoned getaway car, and they passed the video to media outlets to help track down the suspect. (local10.com, Miami, FL, 3/21/17)

TheArmed Citizen® ExtraEarly one morning, a group of young adults attempted to bust out a window of a pawn shop and rob the establishment. Two employees, who were sleeping in the building, woke up and one of them opened fire with a .45-cal. Glock handgun. The trespassers fled the scene, three of which received gunshot wounds. Police found the criminals a week later with one of the thugs pleading guilty to attempted second-degree burglary in return for an agreed upon sentence of 12 months with 11 months suspended. (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, AK, 3/21/17)

From the Armed Citizen® ArchivesMay 1963Caretaker Reed Pitchford, of Chicago, Ill., Grant Memorial AME Church, had been sleeping in the church office when awakened by the sound of someone breaking in. When the intruder kept coming at him, Pitchford drew his pistol and fired twice. The intruder fell dead at his feet. (Chicago Sun Times, Chicago, IL)